The iconic TV series “MythBusters” won’t be shooting off any more cannons in Dublin, but the show’s hosts and producers said Tuesday they hope to continue their relationship with the bomb dispersal range in Dublin.
In the past decade, “Mythbusters” has used the range more than 50 times but has only shot projectiles there less than nine times.
The production company has donated money to the department in return for the use of the facility and often buys supplies locally, but that community bond has been left strained following last week's incident in which a 30-pound cannonball shot during filming and then crossed Tassajara and smashed up a minivan.
“We’ve fired cannons there before, including this one, with nothing happening, but we won’t do it again after this. Cannons are definitely off the table,” host Adam Savage told Dublin Patch Tuesday in a phone interview. “We haven’t heard from the Sheriff’s department if we can even use it anymore, and if that’s the case, we’ll sorely miss it. For us, it’s all about making the community understand we took this very seriously.”
Alameda County Sheriff spokesman J.D. Nelson, who has worked with film crews on the range before, told Patch Tuesday no decision has been made regarding filming at the range, which is currently off limits for all film crews, including news crews, while the
“More than 120 days of revenue is brought into the city because of filming here,” said Nelson, who is not compensated by the film companies, which have included National Geographic. “I’ve worked with “Mythbusters” for eight years, and they are very safe and cautious. It was a freak accident. “
Both Savage and co-host Jamie Hyneman plan to appear at an. Representatives from both the Alameda County Sheriff’s Department and Dublin Police will be there to take questions. Depending on their schedules, “Mythbusters” co-hosts Grant Imahara, Tory Belleci and Kari Byron will try to attend. Both Belleci and Byron were on the set when the incident happened.
The Discovery Show has been on the air for a decade, and this is the first serious accident. Hyneman said the only previous incidents were broken fingers — ironically from moving the heavy shields used as protection during test explosions.
In a rare move, Dec. 6 incident.
“We understood the moment it happened this could be the end of the relationship between 'Mythbusters' and the range,” Savage says. “But that was less important to us than the relationship with the people here.”
The show has actually been beneficial to both the show and the sheriff’s department.
“In doing these experiments, law enforcement can observe these things in action and anticipate potential hazards in the real world," Hyneman says. “Our relationship with law enforcement has generally been good. We hope we can continue to film in Dublin.”
Without cannons, of course.
